Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson series

.o0o.

In a state of shock, I looked from the dog, to Percy, then back to the dog, then back to Percy.

"Percy Jackson!" I fumed angrily once I had snapped out of my surprise, "What in the name of all things good are you thinking? You have gone a brought your ruddy dog to college?! It specifically says in the 'Rules and Regulations' that no animals are allowed in any of the rooms at any time! What makes you think that you have a right to bring Mrs O'Leary to college with you?! You could get expelled for this! Hell, I could get expelled for this!" I took a deep breath and glared at Percy some more.

"Can I speak now?" Percy asked with a raised eyebrow.

"In a second," I snarled. I brought my fist up and gave him a hard punch in the shoulder, "There, now you can speak."

"God, Annabeth! That hurt!" Percy complained as he rubbed his shoulder, "You have a strong hit," he added appreciatively.

"Are you going to explain yourself or am I going to have to march down to the office and report you?" I demanded brushing away his compliment.

"No!" Percy blurted out, "I mean no as in not to report me, not no as in I'm not going to explain myself!"

I narrowed my eyes angrily; Percy had better have a jolly good reason for putting my education at jeopardy.

"Uh," Percy started as his hand flew to his hair the way it always does when he is nervous. Yeah, that's right Percy, be scared, "I know it was a bad idea –" I gave a snort of agreement, "—but I couldn't just leave her at home!"

"Why not exactly?" I questioned with disbelief.

"Because she would be lonely! Mum and Paul are out working from early doors to mid afternoon so Mrs O'Leary would be at home by herself with no one to play with, or to feed her, or to give her exercise, or to keep her company. I had to take her with me! Please, Annabeth, please don't be a snitch!" Percy begged then proceeded to batt his eyelashes. It looked so ridiculous that I found myself giving in.

"Fine," I sighed. Percy cheered. "But, only on the condition that if you get caught I take no blame. I will deny knowing about the presence of a dog and you are going to back me up, got it?"

"Yes! Yes a thousand times! Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you!" Percy said happily as he pulled me in for a hug.

"Urgh," I said trying to push him back, "No touchy-feely, remember? We covered this way back at the beginning."

"I remember," Percy grinned, "But seriously, thanks."

"Meh," I shrugged, "On your neck be it. I am all in the clear. Now, let me meet this new roommate, hopefully she will make much better company than her owner."

"Hey!" Percy defended, "I'm great company!"

I snorted, "Yes, sure."

Percy rolled his eyes, "Mrs O'Leary!" He called, "Here, girl! Come meet Annabeth!"

Mrs O'Leary barked and trotted over. Percy knelt down and picked her up.

"Mrs O'Leary this is Annabeth, Annabeth this is Mrs O'Leary," Percy introduced.

"Aren't you a little cutie?" I cooed as I scratched Mrs O'Leary's head.

'Rurf!' Mrs O'Leary barked before licking my hand. A flash of recognition shot across my brain.

"Wait a second," I said suspiciously narrowing my eyes, "Isn't this the dog you had chase me up a tree when I was eleven?"

Percy laughed heartily, "The one and only! You had a really bad dog phobia back then," he recalled fondly.

"Out," I ordered pointing in the direction of the front door, "The dog has to go."

"What? No! Annabeth!" Percy exclaimed.

"Only kidding," I grinned, "What happens in the past stays in the past. Isn't that right Mrs O'Leary?"

'Rurf!' Mrs O'Leary agreed.

"I just might like you," I smiled as I gave her head a pat, "Now, missy, let's get you something to eat!"

Mrs O'Leary jumped out of Percy's arms and wagged her tail.

"Now, Mrs O'Leary," Percy said sternly, "Make sure you remember that I am the person who has been with you through thick and thin, don't go choosing Annabeth over me, okay?"

Mrs O'Leary nuzzled Percy's foot, "Atta girl," he congratulated.

I rolled my eyes, "Let's go eat."

.o0o.

Swish!

My head snapped away from the truly riveting television adverts and turned towards the front door. A letter of some kind had been slid underneath it.

I wonder what that could be, I thought to myself as I pushed myself up off the couch. I went over to the door and picked up the piece of paper.

'Hey fellow college students! You have been invited to the Last Friday Night party in Room 203. The party will be celebrating the last Friday night that we have before we start college. Better get yourself done up, the party will be starting around nine o'clock. Hope to see you there!'

I snorted, some people were just desperate for a chance to get drunk. Last Friday Night? Seriously, who came up with that?

Last Friday night, yeah we danced on tabletops and we took too many shots, think we kissed but I forgot.

Argh. God darn it! Stop singing Katy Perry, Annabeth!

"Percy!" I called, trying to get the song out of my head. I headed over to his room to bang on the door.

"Yeah?" Percy yelled back.

"We have been invited to some party, get your arse out here!"

"Right, one second!"

I rolled my eyes impatiently and leaned against the wall. A few moments later Percy came out of the bathroom, with a towel around his waist, dripping wet.

"Gah!" I exclaimed embarrassed, my eyes flew to the ceiling. Percy was no more than two meters away from me, wearing only a towel, as in practically naked, "At least warn me! I thought you were in your room!"

Percy chuckled walking over to me. He took the letter out of my hands, "What's this?" he asked.

"Oh... Um..." I had apparently lost the ability of speech. I couldn't get the image of nearly naked Percy away from my vision. Keep looking at the ceiling Annabeth, don't look at Percy! Whatever you do, don't at Percy!

"Am I making you uncomfortable?" Percy smirked; I took no difficulty in hearing the amusement in his tone.

"Uh, just a little," I managed still forcing my eyes to study the interesting patterns on the ceiling, "Can you please stick on a bathrobe or something?"

"Nah, I like to air dry," Percy said with a small laugh, "Oh look, what do you know? We have been invited to a party, how nice."

I tore my eyes away from the ceiling and focussed on Percy's face. He was a little too close for comfort. "Yeah, the people from 203 seem to have arranged one." Be cool, Annabeth, be cool. It's only Percy remember? The perverted pig that always teased you. You have no reason to feel embarrassed.

Sensing my obvious discomfort Percy stepped closer, "Well I'm definitely going, what about you?" Percy licked his lips and leaned closer.

"Yep," I squeaked, a small blush rising to my cheeks, "Yep! I think I'll go!"

Percy laughed and took a step back. I tried to glare at him but my blush ruined the effect.

"I'm just going to go and get ready," I said quickly before rushing off to my bedroom. I flung the door open and shut it closed. I could still hear Percy's amused chuckles.

"Urgh!" I exclaimed to myself angrily as I flopped down onto my bed. I rolled over onto my back and took a deep breath. Ahh, un-Percy-polluted air, breath it all in!

'What the hell was that?!' I demanded internally. 'Why didn't I punch him in the gut?! Why did I just stand there and blush?!'

I groaned and sat up, I was stressed, that's all it was, the stress of moving away from my family and in with Percy. The party would help me relax. I reached into my back pocket to get my phone out. I quickly typed a message to Thalia:

'Hey Thal! You going to that party thing tonight? A x'

As usual, my response from Thalia was instantaneous:

'Yup, the invite just came through the door. Last Friday Night?! What a dorky name! I'm off to get ready. Meet me at quarter to nine outside your room and we'll go in together. I don't want my wee Annie getting scared by a college party :P T x'

I rolled my eyes and quickly typed my reply:

'Ha ha Thalia, very funny :O It's you that needs the protecting ;) I'm off to get ready too, see you in a bit! A x'

I chucked my phone down on the bed and got up. I went over to my wardrobe and pondered what to wear. Before parties I would always panic about what to wear. I never knew whether I was supposed to turn up fancy or to turn up casual. I had embarrassed myself many times when it came to over and under dressing. The invite said 'dress up' so I decided to go with something a little more on the dressy side. Even though I was certain that the majority of girls there would look like hookers I chose to go with an outfit that was slightly more self-respecting.

I pulled out a red romper that showed off the neck and chest area and threw in onto the bed. I then went over to my jewellery box and carefully picked out a selection of Links of London bracelets that I had received over my previous birthdays and laid them down on the bed next to the romper. I pulled my straighteners out of my bedside cabinet, plugged them into the wall, grabbed my dressing gown and ran towards the bathroom.

I locked the bathroom door, hung up my dressing gown and turned on the shower. I would be ready in no time. I gave myself a quick wash to freshen up, brushed my teeth and walked back to my bedroom.

'What's missing here?' I thought to myself as I recognised an absence of something, 'Ah yes, music!'

I stuck my iPod on shuffle and began blow-drying my hair.

Thirty minutes later and I was ready. My hair was perfectly straight, I had a bit of eye make-up on and I smelled good. I did a twirl in the mirror and gave myself a quirky wink. 'Looking fine, Annabeth' I complimented myself. I looked down on at my toes and realised I was still barefoot. I cursed; shoes were always the hardest part to get right. Heels were always a definite no, whenever I wore them for any length of time I always had to take them off because my feet were in agony. 'Beauty is pain,' my stepmom constantly reminded me. I understood getting your eyebrows plucked or your legs waxed but heels are a tad unnecessary. In the end I decided to go for a pair of short white converse. In my opinion, you could never go wrong with a nice set of All Stars. I quickly checked the time on my phone: 8:37pm. As it was nearly time to leave, I checked everything was switched off in my bedroom (I didn't want to be responsible for burning the building down) and went into the kitchen for a glass of water before I left.

Humming to myself I got a glass out of the cabinet and filled it up with tap water. I brought my glass up to my mouth, took a deep breath and tried to drink in all in one.

"You look nice," Percy complimented as he entered the kitchen. I spluttered into my cup. I quickly put the glass down and wiped my mouth with the back of my hand.

"Uh, thanks," I smiled awkward, "You look good too, I guess." In truth, there was no guessing about it. Percy did look good. He was wearing a pair of cream chinos and a grey t-shirt with three quarter length sleeves. If I saw him on the street I would definitely check him out. Unfortunately, I knew what his personality was like and had been on the receiving end of his childish and embarrassing pranks far too many times to appreciate his looks.

"I know," Percy replied with a cocky grin, "It's nice to hear it from you though."

"Savour the moment while you can," I told him, "I was only being polite."

Whatever arrogant comeback Percy was going to give was cut off when Thalia began impatiently banging on the door

"Annabeth!" She yelled, "I'm waiting! Get your fancy arse out here; we have a party to go to!"

I rolled my eyes, "Coming, Thal!" I called, "See you there," I added in a less booming voice to Percy as I ran to the door.

"Later," Percy said giving a small wave.

.o0o.

It appeared that my initial foresight of the party was right. Almost every single female that was attending had on a revealing dress or a very low cut top. I immediately felt out of place. I looked to my left and had a look at what Thalia was wearing: black ripped leggings, a cut off top, ankle boots and a lot of jewellery.

"You look fine," Thalia laughed, easily reading my facial expression, "Trust me, you look great. Just relax."

"Okay," I sighed and tried to push the feelings aside.

"Oh, I love this song!" Thalia exclaimed as 'Gives You Hell' by All American Rejects came on, "Let's dance," she said grabbing my hand and dragging me to the middle of the room.

"No, Thalia, please!" I pleaded; dancing was not one of my strongest points. Sure, I could learn a routine and dance it without looking too ridiculous but when it came to hip swaying and grinding and all that nonsense with other people I couldn't bring myself to do it. I always felt like I was looking spastic and slutty. In my room, on my own, I could manage, but in a busy room with a bunch of college students? No way.

"Don't be silly!" Thalia grinned, "You came to the party for a reason didn't you?"

"Yeah, but—"

"No buts!" Thalia insisted, "Besides, no one will be looking at you as soon as they see my sexy moves."

I laughed and tried to loosen up. I took Thalia's other hand and started swaying.

"It's not much but it's something," Thalia said critically.

By the end of the song I had gotten into the party feeling and no longer felt awkward.

"Much better!" Thalia exclaimed patting me on the back, "I have taught you well, young one."

I rolled my eyes.

"Annabeth!" I heard a familiar voice call over the noise of the music. Zach was making his way over to me.

"Oh god," I moaned quietly already beginning to feel embarrassed. Thalia smirked at me.

Zach pushed his way next to us, "Hey Annabeth, Thalia," he greeted.

"Hi," I smiled awkwardly. God darn it Annabeth! Stop making easy situations really uncomfortable! What's gotten into you lately?!

"Oh, I gotta go!" Thalia said quickly.

"What is it?" I asked sharply.

"Hot guy at two o'clock," Thalia winked, "See you in a bit." Without further a due Thalia shoved her way over to the 'hot guy'. I glared at her retreating back.

I turned back to Zach and struggled to think of something to say. He gave me a large smile. Suddenly 'Single Ladies' came on the speakers. Blood immediately rose to my cheeks.

"You arranged this didn't you?" I demanded embarrassed.

"Maybe," Zach grinned, clearly amused by my reaction, "Now let's dance."

"I'd rather not," I tried to deny, doing my best to force the blush off my face.

"Just for this song?" Zach asked.

"Fine," I sighed, "But don't expect me to do any of my Beyonce moves."

"I've already seen them," Zach shrugged.

"Do you want to dance or not?" I questioned with a raised eyebrow.

Zach winked at me and took my hands, "Let's rule this dance floor."

.o0o.

I closed the front door behind me and fell back against it. I was roasting hot and very tired. I stumbled into the kitchen to get myself a large drink of milk. I had decided against drinking anything but water at the party, God only knew what the punch bowl was spiked with. I poured myself a glass and had a look at the clock on the wall. 3:47am. I cursed, no wonder I was so sleepy. I quickly drank the milk and ran into the bathroom. I nipped to the loo, gave my teeth a fast brush and wiped my make-up off. Half asleep, I staggered to my bedroom, pulled on my pyjamas and collapsed into bed. I was snoring before my head even touched the pillow.

.o0o.

Heyy Guys! Remember me? I'm back. Sorry it took so long to get you an update. You have probably forgotten all about me, I don't blame you to be honest. I have had a very hectic summer. I moved house and moved school. Let me tell you, it's not been easy. Anyway, with the new school year just starting, I have decided to get myself back into the habit of writing fanfiction. I should have a new chapter up at least once every two weeks. In the near future I am planning to upload a Maximum Ride, Max goes to highschool story and a possibly Hogwarts reads the books. I will only start the Harry Potter story if I am certain that I can regularly update it. Because of fanfiction's copyright restrictions, I need to re-write each chapter with slightly different wording so it takes doubly long to write each chapter. More on that in the coming future. Oh yeah, and you have probably noticed that fanfiction has ordered me to take down my RitP stories. Those bitches. Sorry about that (

Anyhoo, I hope you liked this chapter, I put a smidge of Percabeth in it. Don't worry about Zach, Percy and Annabeth will realise there un-denying love for each other come due time. You will be seeing more of me shortly. If you want the Max Ride or Harry Potter story plans in more detail, send me a pm and I'll get back to you. I have been trying to keep my A/Ns short, I tend to rabble on a bit. Just like I am now.

Please leave your opinions and questions in a review! See you shortly, Cam (aka Joy, either is cool) x